Thirty two Filipinos and Kosovans gathered in a small Alpine village in Bavaria, Germany in November 2007 to learn NVC and explore its relevance in the Philippines, welcomed by a fresh fall of snow which set a stunning, uplifting background for their work together.

Hosted by Gitta Zimmermann and the Karl Kubel Foundation, participants were drawn mainly from the Southern Visayan region of the Philippines, but also included participants from Luzon province. It was a diverse group of professionals from a range of disciplines, including senior government officials of police, Dept. Social Services, directors and field workers from non-government and faith-based organisations and senior academics from a major university. Participants from aid agencies in Kosovo also attended. The group included five Catholic priests, two nuns and others of various faiths including Muslims, Christian and Sufis.

What has it been like for your to work on building an international network?
Anne: “My experience so far has been mainly in the French-speaking world. I celebrate the quality of relationship we have been able to create among us, even though there have been challenges, tensions and fears. My dream is to see us slowly but surely live the kind of connections we long for, where we show solidarity, compassion and
trust to one another and where teams exchange support, inspiration and learning..."
Eva: “I feel incredibly excited about the fun, connection, depth, challenge, and learning I have experienced traveling around the world offering NVC in at least 30 different countries. Even if it takes time, energy and causes a lot of problems, I see many advantages to international NVC connections. I so much would like to have more and more people aware of this!"